How To Identify Original, Organic and Genetically Modified Food

Plum pox resistant plum. Wikipedia.

Fruit. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

I was astonished to discover that pink grapefruit was genetically modified. I prefer sweeter grapefuit. 

Old world wines from France have to be grown on root stock imported from America because it is resistant to the phyloxera beetle which destroyed almost all European the vines accidentally when the voracious citters were imported years ago.

Rose Petal Aroma

 I discovered on a recent trip to Cyprus that the sweet smelling roses whose petals are picked to perfume cordials, wines and cosmetics, last only a day. The huge perfectly formed and long lasting roses without the attractive smell are modifications. So, old fashioned roses which smell gorgeous but wilt fast, or bigger blooms which look good and last but have no aroma - now you know why that's the case and which to choose, aroma or visual appeal.

I try to buy patio rose bushes with aroma, hard to find. I identify them by sniffing them in garden centres, rather than buying from a catalogue. If I buy from a catalogue I check that they smell good as well as looking good.

A more frequent purchase is fruit. I recently discovered that the label numbers reveal what you want to know.

 I wrote this poem for myself as a reminder:

Fruit is genetically modified

Disease resistant, and more besides

I think that we can all agree

What others avoid, leaves more for me

For those who fret, or cry or sigh

It's my belief you will not die

But if you really want to know

The number eight will tell you so

To identify modified, you are are able

By reading the numbers on the label

Four digits means food's the same as before

Five digits organic, starts with eight - added more 

I wish they'd do the same to me

Make me the best that I can be

Taller, slim and young and wise

With high IQ and chameleon eyes.

-ends-

Written by Angela Lansbury Saturday 18 2022.

Comic poem on genetically modified fruit and how to identify it by Angela Lansbury 18 2022.

That's my photo of fruit. Really? Can I be sure? Can I prove it? Yes. 

My photos tend to have the warm colours of red, orange or pink somewhere, and lots of circles or curves. I have two of everything, hence the round woved placemat and the plastic placemat. My husband likes earth colours, neutral colours, but I like warmer colours, rainbow colours, so the pale brown neutral Denbyware china handled cutlery was his choice, but the blue Denbyware plate is from a couple of oddments in the same style which I bought later.

Those blue plates are Denbyware seconds in a discontinued line, same shape as the creamy brown Seville pattern. I bought the blue in a charity shop in the UK and you cannot find any more for love nor money. The brown handled cutlery is also Denbyware seconds, bought from our wedding list in 1976, again almost impossible to obtain. The plastic placemats with the oranges were bought from a shop in Singapore and I cannot find any more to match them. The chance of anybody having and mixing those two sets of discontinued Denbyware and the third odd item, the Singapore discontinued mat are near zero. 

Simplified Tip

Prefix 8 is genetically modified

Prefix 9 is organic

Useful Websites

https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/genetically-modified-foods 

Long and technical

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/organic-food-labelling-rules

Label Numbers

https://www.kqed.org/bayareabites/51586/food-labeling-how-to-identify-conventional-organic-and-gmo-produce